Agitator for kettles or tanks



"2 Sheets-Sheet 1..

J. HOBBS. AGITATOR FOR KETTLES OR TANKS,

(No Model.)

No. 447,566. PatentedMar.'3, 1891.

. lnuefilor MW. M

Mineasey W 8 (AMA fi/f (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2,

J. HOBBS. AGITATOR FOR KETTLES OR. TANKS.

No. 447,566. Patented Mar. 3,.189'1.

Wz'inesses [72 van for wires STATES ATENT nines;

AGITATOR FOR KETTLES OR TANKS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent 170442566, dated March 3, 1891.

Application filed June 20, 1890.

T0 at whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN HOBBS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boston, in the county of Suffolk and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Agitators for Kettles and other Vessels, of which the following is a full specification.

My invention consists of an improved adj ustable agitatorand mixeradapted especially for use in kettles for melting fatsin the manufacture of oleomargarine oi1,or for rendering lard, tallow, &c. The agitator is provided with mechanism for raising and lowering the same and with appliances for keeping up a circulation of water or steam within it while revolving in the kettle or other vessel containing the fats or other substances to be stirred. WVhile especially adapted for treatment of fats, as above,it is, moreover, useful in apparatus for extracting the strength from drugs or for any purpose wherein it is desirable to carry heat or cold to the center or interior of a substance or mixture while agitating.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is an upright view, partlyin section, showing the agitator applied to a kettle for treating fats, the agitator being shown in position for operation within the kettle. Figs. 2 and 3 are plan views of details, and Fig. 4 is a view showing the agitator raised out of the kettle.

I will proceed for convenience to describe my apparatus as adapted for use with a kettle for melting and mixing fats, calling attention to the fact that its construction and operation are similar in the main for the various other purposes to which it is adapted.

A is an outer and A an inner kettle, the two being preferably bolted together, as by bolts 1), so as to leave a space a between the I sides and bottoms thereof.

E is a vertical shaft seated at the bottom in a bearing-block F, Within the innerkettle, and at the top in the bearing-block F. This shaft derives motion through the bevel-gears B B, the gear B being fixed thereon and meshing with the gear B, the shaft B of which is arranged to revolve whenever the agitator is to be operated. The agitator Serial No. 356,100. (No model.)

proper consists in this case of a system of piping K, so arranged as to form stirrers or paddles, and firmly secured to a sleeve E, which slides on the shaft E, being fastened to said sleeve in any desired manner, as by connections k. The sleeve E is fastened to the shaft E so as to turn therewith by means of the set-screw 6 The sleeve is, moreover, movable up and down on the shaft, and is preferably provided with a circular doubly-flangedv top E either integral with said sleeve or secured thereto. Between the flanges of the top E fits loosely the circular strap 6, Fig. 2, which is held stationary as the sleeve revolves by means of the arm c engaging at its outer end with the rest 2 on the side of the inner kettle A.

H H are chains connected with opposite sides of the strap 6 and serving as means for lifting the agitator out of the kettle when desired. To this end the said chains pass over pulleys I I on each side, as shown in the drawings, and are attached to weights V of sufficient size to counterbalance the weight of the agitator and its connections.

The shaft E at its upper end revolves within any suitably-constructed stuffing-box, as f, constructed in such a manner that an outer steam or water pipe L may communicate in a perfectly tight manner with a passage Z, bored out in the shaft E, when the said shaft revolves.

L is a tube or pipe connected to the shaft E and communicating with the passage Z. This pipe L extends downward, and when the agitator is in position for operation,as shown in Fig. 1, is connected by means of the coupling Z with a pipe Z passing through a hole in the flanged top E of the sleeve E, the pipe Z being in turn connected with the system of piping K, forming the agitator near the top thereof. This pipe 2* is the inlet-pipe to the agitator. The outlet consists of a pipe L arising from the bottom of the system K and terminating at the top in a bend L forming a spout to discharge condensed steam or waterT G, Fig. 3, is a stationary annular pan held suspended above the flanged top E of the sleeve E by hooks or links it, connected with the chains H or in any other desired manner, as by separate chains or ropes from above.

G is an outlet-pipe from the pan G, preferably passing along the arm 0' and secured, as at g, thereto. This pipe has a downward slope and discharges its contents either, as shown in the drawings, into the space a between the inner and outer kettles, or, if desired, into a separate waste-pipe. The construction and arrangement are such that as the agitator, an d with it the pipes Z and L revolves the said pipes Z and L pass around within the annular pan G, while the pipe L discharges its contents into said pan, whence it ilows out through the pipe G. In this manner steam or water may circulate constantly through the agitator, heating or chilling, as desired, the interior of the substance within the kettle while said substance is being stirred.

When it is desired to raise the agitator out of the kettle for the purpose of allowing the fats to settle afterbeing stirred and mixed or for any other purpose, the set-screw e is first loosened and the coupling Z unscrewed. The agitator is then turned slightly till an appropriate hole in the flanged top E" comes directly under the pipe L, when it is raised to any required height, together with the pan G and its connections, by lifting on the chains II H.

The kettle in connection with which the agitator is used in the present instance is preferably so constructed that water or steam can be introduced around the inner kettlein the space a, as well as in the interior thereof, through the agitator. lVith this in view the pipe 0 enters the space a near the bottom of the outer kettle, and into this pipe run both the waterpipe t), controlled by the valve 0, and the steam-pipe S, controlled by the valve In this way either water or steam maybe introduced at will. N is the waste or overflow pipe, running out of the outer kettle near the top thereof.

\Vhen the fats or other materials in the kettle have settled after the stirring and mixing operations, the lighter substances may be drawn oil from the top down to any required depth in the manner shown in Fig. t by means of the pipe D, jointed near the bottom of the inner kettle to communicate with the outletpipe D. The heavier substances at the bottom of the kettle maybe drawn oft separately through the outlet-pipe 1, controlled by the valve P.

\Vhile I preferably construct my agitator in the manner described,-with the system of piping so arranged that the bends in the pipe themselves form the stirrers, I may apply the same principle to agitators already in use, wherein there are separate paddle-blades, by carrying the piping around said blades and securing it thereto.

1 claim- 1. The combination, with a kettle or other vessel, of a vertical shaft, a stulling-box, a sleeve embracing said shaft and revoluble with and movable up and down upon said shaft, a system of piping secured to said sleeve, and suitable inlet and outlet passages constructed and arranged substantially as described.

52. The combination, with a kettle or other vessel, of a vertical shaft, a stuffing-box, a sleeve embracing said shaft and revoluble therewith, a system of piping secured to said sleeve, suitable inlet and outlet pipes, and a stationary annular pan, substantially as described.

The combination, with a kettle or other vessel, of a vertical shaft, an agitator revoluble with and movable up and down upon said shaft, a stationary lifting-strap suitably con.- nected with said revoluble agitator, and suitably-guided chains connected to said strap and provided with counterbalancing-weights, substantially as described.

a. The combination, with a kettle or other vessel, of a vertical shaft, an agitator revoluble with and movable up and down upon said shaft, provided with a circulatory system of piping and suitable inlet and outlet passages, a stationary strap suitably connected with said revoluble agitator, and suitably-guided chains connected to said strap and provided with counterbalaneing-weights, all constructed and arranged substantially as and for the purposes described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

- JOllN nonns.

lVitnesses:

\VJI. 1 1i. D owsn, ALBERT 1*). LEAUH. 

